Kern Sheriff offers reward regarding infant in dumpster

Thursday

Aug 1, 2013 at 7:43 PM

The Secret Witness Program is offering a reward for information leading to the identification of the person or persons responsible for placing the body of a newborn infant in a residential trash dumpster on Sunday, June 21.

The Secret Witness Program is offering a reward for information leading to the identification of the person or persons responsible for placing the body of a newborn infant in a residential trash dumpster on Sunday, June 21. Kern County Sheriff’s deputies responded to the 500 block of Beardsley Ave. in Oildale regarding a report of a deceased infant found in a residential trash dumpster at 6:11 a.m. on Sunday.Deputies arrived on scene, located the dumpster, and confirmed the dumpster contained the body of a deceased infant. The reporting party told deputies he had been moving his dumpster from the curb back up toward his house when he located the infant’s body. Detectives responded to the scene and initiated a homicide investigation. The infant appeared full term and no more than several days old. It did not appear the body had been in the dumpster for more than one or two days. An autopsy was performed on June 24, and the cause and manner of the infant’s death are pending further studies. The infant has not been identified. The Sheriff’s Office is asking the public’s assistance in this case. If anyone has information on this case they are asked to call the Sheriff’s Office at (661) 861-3110, Detective Brandon Rutledge at (661) 392-6900, or Secret Witness at (661) 322-4040. Anonymous text tips can be sent to TIP411 (847411). Just type the keyword “KCSO” prior to the message. The Secret Witness phone line operates 24 hours a day. Secrecy is guaranteed to those who call. Callers will be asked to select a code name and number when they provide information to the Secret Witness Program. If additional contact with the caller is necessary, the code name will be published in the local media along with a request for the original caller to establish contact. Once contact is made, the caller will be asked to provide their original code number for verification purposes. The same steps will be taken to pay a reward to the caller. The Secret Witness Program is operated under the direction of an independent, voluntary board of directors representing civic organizations, law enforcement agencies, media outlets, and corporate sponsors.